Watch guard



Patented Nov. 30, 1926.

CARL E. PETERSEN, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

Application filed August 17, 1926. Serial No. 129,730.

This invention relates to devices for use in connection with watches without chains to prevent a watch from falling from the watch pocket ofl trousers or vests and to prevent the surreptitious removal of a watch from such pockets which are commonly termed watch guards, and it is the object of the invention to provide an improved device of this character which is novel, simple, cheap to manufacture and efficient in use.

With the foregoing object in view l have illustrated an embodiment of the invention in the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a front eleva-tion of the watch guard on an enlarged. scale.

Figure 2 is a side elevation.

Figure 3 is a side elevation showingY the same with awatchV engaged thereon and applied to a pocket, 'and' Figure 4 is a plan view of a blank on a reduced scale from which the watch guard is formed. U

In carrying out the invention there is provided a blank comprising a plate 5 of resilient material, such as brass, steel or the like, this plate as shown in Figure 4 at. one end portion being approximately three times the width as compared with the major and other end portion 6 of the plate. rI he opposite marginal portions of the portion of greatest width at the juncture thereof with the portion of less width are winclined toward and merge into said portion of less width, as at 7. The portion of greatest width is arranged with al pair of parallel slits 8 extending inward from the end thereof, the. portion interniediate-the two slits being substantially the same Width as the end portion 6 and havin@ a part severed from the end, as indicated by the d0tted line 10. The plate is then bent upon itself intermediate its ends to form a loop or eye preferably circular at the bend, as at 11, this bend being located at a point so that the end portion or member 6 of less width and the intermediate portion 9 of the plate of greatest width will be of substantially the same length and arranged so that said members will normally assume a spread position and diverge slightly outward from the juncture thereof with the loop or eye 11, as shown in Figure 2, the extremities thereof being in the nature of finger grips whereby they may be readily grasped and pressed `together or movedin a direction toward each other. For this purpose the extremity of the member 6 is preferably made of enlarged circula-r form, as at 12, for the engagement of the thumb, while the extremity of the other member 9 is curved slightly outward and may be folded or rolled upon itself, as at 13, to serve as a finger grip.

The portions of the plate at the outer sides of the slits 8 are cui'ved forwardly, as at 14, in VFigure 2', to intersect and engage at opposite sides of the member 7 intermediate the extremity and the juncture thereof with the loop or eye 11, and then extend-ed in a direction toward sai-d eye or down-wardlyy as viewed in Figure 2 with the extremity curved slightly in reversev direction.

Tov strengthen thev material at the bend' or eye 11 and to increase the inherent tension of' the material tol cause the end members 6, 9y to assume the spread position shown i-n- Figure 2 the material of the eye is fluted to arrange the same of convex form in cross section as shown at 16 in Figure 1. This is preferably shaped after the plate has been bent upon itself by spreading the marginal portions of the material of the eye outwardly.

In use the eye 11 is adapted to receive a watch ring 17, this ring being engaged thereon by slipping the same over the end 12 of the members 6 and pressing said member outward to permit of the passage of the key ring between said member and the downwardly extended part 15 of the forwardly curved portion 14. To engage the guard upon the edge of a pocket with the watch suspended from the eye 11 the extremities 12 and 13 of the members 6 and 9 are engaged between the thumb and finger and pressed together moving the member 6 away 'from and increasing the space between said member and the extremity 15 of the forwardly curved portion 14, to receive the edge portion of the pocket, this engagement being facilitated by the reversely bending of the extremity 15. After the guard is engaged upon the pocket edge the members 6, 9 are released and the inherent tension of the material thereof will cause said members to draw and clamp the material of the pocket between the member 6 and the downwardly extending portion 15 firmly holding the same thereto. Should the watch be dropped from the pocket the weight of the watch will tend to more firmly clamp the guard to the pocket. To remove the guard all that isnecessary is to grasp the finger grips 12, 13 and press the members 6, 9 into contiguous relation to each other when it may be readily withdrawn. The weight of the watch will tend to draw the outer material of the pocket and thereby the finger grips to the person and in any attempt to surreptitiously remove the guard it is necessary to get the finger in back of the linger grip 13 and between said grip and the person which will be readily felt and the surreptitious removal of the watch detected.

Having thus described my invention I I claim l. In watch guards7 a plate of resilient material bent upon itself to form an eye at the bend and two end members diverging outward therefrom adapted to assume a normal spread position through the inherent tension of the material, one of said end members being of greater width than the other end member and arranged with a pair of longitudinal slits ont into the end thereof with the portions laterally of the slits curved forwardly and extended downwardly at opposite sides of the other end member and cooperating with the latter to form a. clamp, and said curved portions and the one end member being adapted to be spread relative to each other for the passage of an article for engagement upon the eye.

2. A watch guard as claimed in claim l,

wherein the forwardly curved portion of the one end member intersects the other end member intermediate the connection thereof with the eye and the extremity and said eX- tremity and the part intermediate the forwardly curved portion of the one end member adapted to serve as finger grips 'to move the end members toward each other against the inherent tension thereof and the one end member away from the downwardly eX- tended part of the forwardly curved portion of the other end for the passage of an article therebetween for engagement on the 3. A watch guard as claimed in claim l, wherein the material of the plate at the bend is arranged of convex form in cross section to serve as a strengthening means and to increase the inherent tension thereof.

Signed at the city of New York, in 'the county of New York, and State of New York this 14th day 'of August, 1926.

CARL E. PETERSEN. 

